Liberalisation of government control and opening of Indian economy to global markets: Need for second level democratic agrarian reforms to eradicate poverty and unemployment, to save farmer and democracy.
Land reform laws and liberalisation: 65 to 70% of Indian population in contrast to many developed world of 2 to 3% live in rural and semi urban areas and depend on subsistence agricultural economy.The land reforms and land ceiling laws have privatised the land and conferred ownership rights on small farmers and tenants. well this agrarian reform was a step in democratisation of political, economic resources of the country for dignity,independence and development of farming community as a whole against the then feudal intermediate exploiters.But with liberalisation of markets to global competition, this once democratic agrarian reforms has now become bottleneck to their own freedom and development and has become a swirl pool of mass poverty unemployment,debt trap and unhygienic neibhourhoods and abetment to suicides.
Dishonesty of politicians and political parties:Our political system, politicians are adopting the vote catching and paternalistic approach to empower themselves with more power over such dependant mass poverty by false and dishonest promises of dolls from the state coffers and projecting it as if it is their personal credit, good somersault that such benefits are dolled to them. we observe this with all political parties without exception. some take extreme forms of mass corruption of public funds to spend, to trade on the poverty of huge sections of our people.This is producing dishonest and criminal mentality , mass cheating in politicians and burocracy, from head to bottom of political parties in their competition for survival for capture of governmental power.
This is not good to democracy or economic survival of country in the global competition in this globalisation era.
We need to diagnose the cause of the disease and prescribe proper medicine or else our succeeding generations may fall in to once more slavery conditions. Beware of politicians who are trying to trade with the poverty of our masses with out constructive ideas!
causes of the disease: lack of education and self employed small and middle class ownership holdings in agriculture and businesses is the cause of low productivity,irresponsiveness to market price fluctuations, immobility and poverty.It has all trappings of subsistence ecnomy.He cannot conduct the agriculture on business principles.he has no business accounting practices. he wont calculate the family labor.He would not calculate the interests on capital invested on land towards its purchase or notional purchase and the rent it to derive and the alternative opportunity costs to his loss of wages or income to his labour or skills, and he cannot yet exit the agriculture or business as he has no other alternative employment to fall back and will be forced to sell his product in distress sale below his production cost prices in adverse market conditions and continue to live in poverty attached to land and village. With new tech consumer items like cell phones, though his communication channels increased and with it his level of knowledge of society and market, it is increasing his monthly bill payments without better employment and incomes.
Last week i went on a small vacation trip to Dharmashala,Dalhousie Pathankote via Delhi Panipat Chandigadh by bus and car,auto. I had made such trips to different parts of north and south India from kanyakumari to Kashmir and Jiasalmir to Gouhati, Himayan hilly regions of Arunachal pradesh and Sikkim Gangtok, Kulllu, Manali.The greatest part to be observed from these trips is great unity in diversity of the country, in fact as a mini-world in itself.But equally discomforting to me was the colossal poverty side by side super rich, unhealthy and unhygienic neibhourhoods on roadsides and inside the towns and rural habitats.Food items exposed to roadside dust are sold by small business vendors. they could not have other source of employment out side their small vending.it would appear to me that it is not fitting with minimum standard capitalistic entrepreneurship and mobility and their business is no less than the subsistence farmer in rural India.. in my personal observation of living conditions of people in most parts of rural India, the problems related to economics of their household as well as the small business' environment in their neighbour hoods are all most of similar pattern despite huge ethnic, cultural, linguistic, religious, and social geographical diversities from Kashmir to kanyakumari,Jaisalmir to Gouhati.All of them are maintained in very unhygienic conditions. though it is hand to mouth, and often lapsed in to debt with money lender, he cannot leave for better avocation because he has no better skills nor any employment opportunity outside. similarly food venders on foot path etc. These problems are like hen -egg cause effect relationship.Similiar is the position with subsistence farmer in country side.he cannot leave his land though it is not a profitable avocation as he has no opportunity to any fixed hours employment in public or private sector, either in country side or urban cities suited to his qualifications and social status. It is like that he has to live on his land in this subsistence conditions under the perennial debt trapped conditions and poverty because he has no better other alternative employment opportunity though he may be ready to do any work suited to his qualification.
Diagnosis of the disease: Liberalisation and privatising,integration of Indian economy to global economy is in right choice and in right direction. Once we liberalise our economy to global competition and market forces,every part of economy i.e. industrial, agricultural and service sectors must be tuned to the with stand the global market forces and market price fluctuations,and our democratic political structures,legal and property rights as well as the legal remedies under the constitution and laws must be so fine tuned to seize the opportunities and overcome any bottlenecks to meet these global challenges all other things being given,the operation of free markets have the tendency to shift the individual labour time and values of a small and inefficient producers and other market players to more productive efficient operators in market value -price mechanism which determine the market prices and therefore a natural tendency to push the subsistence farmer from out of markets and to unemployment. there fore following factors have to be kept in mind while bringing the agrarian reforms.
1) The inequality arising out of value- price mechanism in market exchange relationships
2) effects of this inequality on small ownership self employed subsistence economies to increase the poverty,unemployment, ,disease and unhygienic neighbourhoods
3)The low capital to labour ratio in agriculture and lack of division of labour due to this small ownership holdings.similiar is the position with small household traditional industrial ,shops and establishments resulting low productivity
4)lack of opportunity to adopt modern methods of production and management and accounting methods
5)inability to adopt to the modern minute division of labour and specialisation
6)The effects of these factors on the freedom and security to life and liberty and property of such subsistence farmers/businesses in any given political system with free markets economy.
It is a mass vicious circle.Once we liberalise our economy to global competition and market forces,every part of economy i.e. industrial, agricultural and service sectors must be tuned to the with stand the global market forces and market price fluctuations
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Follow Mr S. Lakshma Reddy, Advocate, A.P. High Court at http://slakshma.goforthelaw.com
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